The Giants got two last year--both sixth rounders:
#33 in the 6th & 198th overall: S-Tyler Sash
&
#37 in the 6th & 202nd overall: LB-Jacquian Williams.
The Williams selection REALLY paid off.
The formula is dependent on the free agents that your organization lost in the previous year (players you cut do not count) compared to the number that were signed, and is related the financial terms of the contracts involved on both ends along with the on-field success of the players involved.
**Click on this link fro BBI for reference:
http://www.bigblueinteractive.com/free-agency/2011-free-agent-scorecard/
Last year the Giants lost the following free agents from their own roster (the first 3 are the ones who signed for "big" money and were intended to play a lot of snaps or start with their new teams):
1-WR Steve Smith (Signed by Eagles; 1-year, $4 million)
2-TE Kevin Boss (Signed by Raiders; 4-years, $16 million)
3-DT Barry Cofield (Signed by Redskins; 6-years, $36 million)
4-WR Derek Hagan (Signed by Raiders)
5-LB Gerris Wilkinson (Signed by Jaguars)
6-S Michael Johnson (Signed by Lions)
Those who were signed are (and who started/played a lot of snaps are):
1-OC David Baas (Signed from 49ers; 5-years, $27.5 million)
2-P Steve Weatherford (Signed from Jets; 1-year, $700,000 salary)
**I'm not including the following players since they didn't play enough and were signed on the cheap:
1-DT Gabe Watson (Signed from Cardinals)
2-PK Rhys Lloyd (Signed from Panthers)
3-CB Brian Williams (Signed from Falcons; 1-year, $810,000 salary)
4-WR Brandon Stokley (Signed from Seahawks; 1-year, $910,000 salary)
This mysterious compensatory equation DOES NOT include players lost or gained who were: (1)signed after being cut, (2)practice squad players, or (3)"Street" free agents.
To quote the following article from nfl.com,
"Compensatory free agents are determined by a formula based on salary, playing time and postseason honors. The formula was developed by the NFL Management Council. Not every free agent lost or signed by a club is covered by this formula" (source: "NFL distributes compensatory draft picks to 23 clubs" from March 25, 2011.
http://www.nfl.com/draft/story/09000d5d81ef2e1e/article/nfl-distributes-compensatory-draft-picks-to-23-clubs).
The 3 factors that are important, as mentioned in the excerpt above, are
salary, playing time, and postseason honors.
Of the guys that the Giants lost, it is Cofield, Boss, and Smith who factor into the equation. Of the guys that they gained, it's only Baas who is a major factor and Weatherford who are significant.
Now let's concern ourselves with these factors. First postseason honors: none of the players mentioned received any.
As far as playing time is concerned, Baas and Weather ford played a lot, while Cofield, Boss, and Smith---particularly Cofield played a lot.
Finally, let's look at salary. Combined, the Giants spent $32.5 over 6 years on Baas & Weatherford, for an average of approximately 5.42 million per year, whereas the Redskins, Raiders, and Eagles did the Giants favor (particularly the free-spending Redskins and idiotic Raiders) signing Cofield, Boss, and Smith to combined contracts that totaled $56 million over 11 years, for an average of approximately $5.1 per year.
The 5 year difference in the length of the deals that the Giants' former players were signed to along wit the $23.5 million difference are going to be large factors with respect to the compensatory picks that the Giants may receive in next month's draft.
It should be noted that the primary factor is salary, and that teams that gain and lose the same number of players, but lose higher-valued players than they gain also can be awarded a pick, but only in the seventh round, after the other compensatory picks. The Giants lost 6 and signed 7, but the ones they lost cost a lot more ($23.5 million more) than those that they gained ($32.5 million, as noted above).
This is why the signing of Weatherford for only one year can be advantageous to the Giants, even though he performed very well for them, add to the fact that he is a Punter, and the Giants may well benefit pickwise from his inexpensive one year deal.
The compensatory picks are usually announced after the Owner's Meetings. This year they are taking place between March 25th and March 28th, so we should find out very shortly thereafter which teams were awarded these extra selections.
There are websites out there that have people speculating on how many picks teams receive, like the one linked below. This particular blogger has the Giants receiving 2 compensatory picks: a 5th or 6th, and a 7th. We know how much the Giants value their draft picks, so it must also be remembered that there is a pick that the Giants may have to do away with this year (I think it may be a 7th, if at all) with respect to the 2010 Reynaud and Rosenfels trade. The 2012 selection that the Giants may to give up is conditional (source:
http://blog.vikings.com/2010/09/03/pending-physicals-vikings-trade-rosenfels-reynaud/).
If anyone has any info on that please feel free to discuss it. I think I read somewhere that the Giants may be off the hook now with that trade since Rosenfels didn't make the roster this year, and of course Reyanud has since departed the team entirely. The Giants lost their 5th last year, but were awarded two compensatory picks, so they still had 8 overall choices instead of the normal 7 (one per round) that they normally do each year.
All in all, we should be hearing pretty soon--by this time next week for sure--what the Giants have receive to help them in this year's draft, which is coming closer and closer by the day.
2012 Compensatory pick projections by ct17 - (
New Window )
"The Vikings on Friday traded QB Sage Rosenfels and RB Darius Reynaud to the NY Giants in exchange for an undisclosed draft choice in the 2011 NFL Draft and a conditional draft choice in the 2012 NFL Draft.
The trade is contingent upon both Rosenfels and Reynaud passing physical examinations with the Giants."
In shirt, there are 4 things that are on the on-deck circle, so to speak newswise, before the draft near the end of April:
1-Compensatory picks (right after march 28th).
2-continued free agency.
3-the announcement of the 2012 schedule.
4-OTAs.
Link - ( New Window )